This weekend our team will wrap up the 2019 campaign at the season finale in Chiba, Japan. Our last Chiba podium came in 2016 where we clinched third place. While we’ve managed to make it through to the Round of 8 in two-thirds of the 2019 races, our team has been wrestling with elusive engine problems that have kept us off the podium so far this season. We are looking forward to a fresh challenge at the fifth consecutive stop in Chiba, which features a re-designed racetrack that offers tactician Paulo Iscold a variety of new options to consider to find the best lines. Our whole team is also looking forward to seeing the Japanese fans!

Back home in the USA, the team has already been seeing a lot of supporters in recent weeks, with appearances at EAA AirVenture in OshKosh, Wisconsin, the Central Iowa Airshow and North Dakota’s Fargo Airsho. After Chiba, we are happy to share that Kirby will continue working on flying projects together with sponsor Red Bull North America, and we’re already planning to book his schedule with even more airshows moving forward.

But for now, the team’s complete focus is on the racing this weekend. “Our mindset and objective here in Chiba are the same as every race – to win,” says Kirby. “Just because it’s the last race of the season doesn’t change that. We know we are having issues with engine performance, so the odds are a little against us, but we will do everything we can to move through the rounds and fight for the first-place finish.”